GenericSciFi

The Sinfulness of Man vs. the Purity of God

I think my great failing as a Christian is that in my fictional work I have not presented the Gospel.  Beginning with Harmony Book 3: A Country Among Countries, I am rectifying that.

The bible teaches us that all men have ‘sinned’ or have offended God, Who Himself is without sin.

• “[…]Holy, Holy, Holy is the Lord God Almighty …” —Revelation 4:8
• “Righteous art thou, O LORD, and upright are thy judgments.” —Psalm 119:137 
• “[…] thou thoughtest that I was altogether such an one as thyself …” —Psalm 50:21

In the verses above we see that God is separate, he’s not like you and me.  You have to realize that we are estranged from God by a sinful nature.  We have a proclivity to make things about ourselves, and not God.

• “For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God.” —Romans 3:23
• “The LORD looked down from heaven upon the children of men, to see if there were any that did understand, and seek God.  They are all gone aside, they are all together become filthy: there is none that doeth good, no, not one.” —Psalm 14:2-3

Below, the salvation the bible
speaks of through the Person of Jesus Christ, was not fulfilled because there was something ‘worthy’ in you.  He didn’t see a spark or some hope or anything good about you.  Instead, God looked down and says we’re all filthy, no one does good, not a single one of us meet the requirements of what God deems ‘good’.

• “For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.” —Romans 6:23
• “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son,
  that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved. He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.  And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil.” —John 3:16-19
• “For he [God] hath made him [Jesus] to be sin for us, who [Jesus] knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him [Jesus].” –2^nd Corinthians 5:21

The basis of forgiveness and salvation is the love of God.  Not your personal worthiness, because you were not worth it.  When we start talking about personal worth and value, a Christian’s worthiness is found in Christ.  Only when I am in Christ do I have any personal value to God. (outside of Christ you are filthy, inside Christ you are righteous)

• “This is a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners; of whom I am chief.” —1^st Timothy 1:15
• “Remember that Jesus Christ of the seed of David was raised from the dead according to my gospel:” –2^nd Timothy 2:8
• “But for us also, to whom it shall be imputed, if we believe on him that raised up Jesus our Lord from the dead; Who was delivered for our offences, and was raised again for our justification.” –Romans 4:24-25

The bible teaches that Jesus was delivered up and crucified— killed— for our transgressions against a perfect God.  He was in the tomb for three nights and then rose again.  The resurrection proves He was Who he said He was, the Son of God— John 5:39-47, Matthew 16:16.  His death pays the price for our sins (redemption), and his resurrection secures our justification (acquittal, in a legal sense).

I will end my clumsy attempt with this:

• “Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.” —John 14:6
• “That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.  For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.” —Romans 10:9-10
• “He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life: and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him.” —John 3:36

Jesus is worthy of your love.  He willingly gave Himself up to wicked men that crucified Him in order to satisfy
the wrath of God against sinners.

If you have any questions about the scriptures or Jesus, please contact me at http://www.genericscifi.com/contact.php.

‘Old Man’ Patrin, the Scribe …

Patrin’s story is told in retrospect. Before Serin passed he suggested Patrin chronicle all that he’s done for the Kingdom of Denion, and now as an old man who is very much aware of his own mortality, he begins his story. It’s important for the reader to understand that Patrin is writing from memory of things decades in the past. While we are privy to his feelings and impressions and thoughts of his youth, his journal entries are subject to the passage of time. He doesn’t always recall the details of a particular matter, some events are related in broad strokes.

One of the obvious traits of his writing is his tendency to recall pain and grief. It’s evident that he hasn’t progressed emotionally from the trauma he experienced in Baler’s camp and later from Galin’s use (betrayal of friendship) of him as an assassin.

But, the story is more than a painful memoir, for even as he writes he is fulfilling one last mission— destroy the remaining otherworldly tech. The opening dialogue of each chapter tells us of his progress; now the old man, lamenting a task that he should have completed as a younger man, follows his own footprints from the past across the continent and far south into foreign lands, seeking a place known only as ‘The Falls’. Once there he will take the last of the tech and rid the world of it.

Author’s Note: I think the greatest lesson that Patrin’s story can offer us is about ‘moving on’. Patrin never progressed beyond the scars of his youth. His earliest memories have marred him, and, for me, the saddest part of the story is that thus far it appears he will die still stuck there, in the past.

Hefft, the Keeper …

Hefft is the grandson of Garret.  Some time after Garret passed, his son, Tellen, drowned.  Tellen’s now widowed wife, finding that she no longer had the means to take care of a young son, delivered him to Patrin.  We don’t know his precise age, but he appears to be in his late twenties or early thirties.  If we consider ‘ten’ to be the age at which he came into Patrin’s care, then it is likely that Patrin was still active in Whitefield, where we know that at Serin’s request he returned to complete his journeyman training as a scribe, and later replaced Serin as Royal Scribe.  Meaning, that Hefft would have spent a good portion of his formative years in the Palace, among the Courts of Denion.

When Patrin retired as Royal Scribe, he returned to the place that gave him the most peace, Galin’s old cabin tucked away in the Grandwood.  Hefft, a grown man by that time, followed the aging Patrin and continued to serve him in the very same place that his grandfather once lived and served Galin.

With the exception of the occasional visit to Woodpoint for supplies, Hefft appears to have secluded himself at the cabin, caring for ‘old man’ Patrin.  At one point he brings home a young boy, that Patrin believes looks too much like him to be anything other than his son.

When Patrin decided to undertake his final mission, Hefft and the boy follow.  Patrin then abandons them at Portis Doha, for fear that the next stage of the journey will prove too much for the ‘weaklings’.

Author’s note: The presence of Hefft’s young son creates an interesting contrast of ‘worlds’ or ideology.  Patrin grew up in ‘violent’ times, but the boy clearly grew up in a more gentle world and is easily frightened by the ‘old man’.

Ylva, the Wolfmaiden

Garret, the Warden …

A veteran soldier in Denion’s army, Garret was appointed by King Yulin as the Sergeant Warden over his oldest son and heir, Prince Galin.  Possessed of a soldier’s single-mindedness and his own practical nature, Garret was a strong influence in the prince’s life.

We know by ‘old man’ Patrin’s diary entries that Garret had a son named Tellen, who drowned sometime after his passing.  His grandson, Hefft, fell into Patrin’s care and left with him on his final mission, but was later abandoned in Portis Doha because Patrin didn’t believe he was strong enough to face the challenges ahead.  Though, it is possible that Patrin did this in consideration of Hefft’s young son, whom was traveling with them and hadn’t fared well on the long journey south through the Grandwood.

Garret appears to be have been a simple soldier, with nothing notable beyond his skill as a swordsman.  It is not know why King Yulin specifically chose him to be Galin’s guardian, but there is some speculation that they were former acquaintances.  Because of his age it is possible that Garret was involved in the Second Boar War, but we do not know the dates of his service and in his diary Patrin never provides much detail on Garret’s life prior to meeting him.

During younger Prince Halin’s bid for the throne Garret proved his loyalty to be incorruptible.  He was with Galin during the entirety of his exile, and remained with him once they returned in secret to Denion and became a conspirator to place him back on the throne.  We have Patrin’s diary notes showing that he was trained by Garret in swordsmanship, and while it’s never implicitly stated it seems obvious that he trained Xadik and others that Galin found useful.  He is also a skilled woodsman, often teaching Patrin about surviving in the wilderness.

Author’s note: I’ve always seen Garret as being more moral than Galin, but his devotion to the prince and his loyalty to the now dead King Yulin will always win over his better judgement.

Xadik, the farmer …

Patrin of Orlon (maybe)